As the weather forecast predicts the hottest day of the year, my thoughts turned to how the sunshine can boost sales for the most surprising products. It’s not just sales of sandals, sausages and sorbet that bloom in hot weather, here are a three other items that do well, one that does worse than expected and my Top Four Weather Marketing Tips for Any Business.

Cinema tickets

In extreme heat waves cinema sales increase. Sound odd? Well, a nice air-conditioned cinema is a great refuge from a sweltering hot day.

Internet shopping - for anything!

Research published in the J of Consumer Psychology has shown that during hot weather “intent to purchase” on websites increases regardless of product. In one experiment subjects holding a warm heated pad said they would pay more for products than those holding cold pads.

Shaving foam

You might think this would be pretty constant all year round but women in particular shave much more frequently in summer. Hair removal cream can go up by 1400% in the first week end of a hot spell.

Beer - different responses to hot weather in different cities

Happy memories of a Bavarian holiday.

In most places beer sales go up in hot weather. In the Chicago summer, beer sales increase only after three days of below average temperatures.

Now that's what I call a 99!

Degrees of DifferenceHow hot does it need to be to trigger buying seasonal products? Well, it depends where you live. In the south of England, ice cream sales plateau at around 25C whereas in Glasgow it only needs 19C to reach maximum sales.

Top Four Weather Marketing Tips - for any business

1) Have weather-related content ready to goWe are all fascinated by the weather, so preparing content for your website/social media that is relevant to specific weather events such as snow storms or heat waves is a great way to capture attention and can be released when timely. And the content will be relevant next time - so look out for a recycled version of this blog next summer!2) Time your mailingsDon’t plan a mailing campaign to a large city in July or August as response rates drop off when folks are on holiday. And in good weather young people will spend less time in front of their computers at the week end so schedule your emailers, tweets and posts accordingly.

3) Weather AppsConsider creating a weather-related app. Pantene has a weather ap linked to weather forecasts of humidity to tell women whether the day will be a Frizz day or Fried Hair day (and recommend the products to suit.)

4) Tactical advertising based on forecastsPlan weather-responsive advertising, whether tv or online. Praying for a rainy day, US craft chain Michael’s targets advertising three days in advance of a rainy forecast, when hobbyists might be planning to stay in.